


Future Moons

by BarPurple



Series: BarPurple's House of Horror 2017 [6]
Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: Alternate Wish!Verse, F/M, Werewolves
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-07
Updated: 2017-10-07
Packaged: 2019-01-10 08:01:20
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,484
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12294840
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BarPurple/pseuds/BarPurple
Summary: The Evil queen was defeated, and the price was friendships that once had appeared to last forever.





	Future Moons

The Enchanted Forest had changed much in the thirty years since the defeat of the Evil Queen. In the glittering capital of Snow White and her Prince Charming there was prosperity and peace, and for the most part the whole kingdom shared in the joys that an absence of war and conflict brought. While the victory over Regina had been a happy day, the days that followed had seen tension and division between Snow White’s heroes, and some of those wounds cut so deep that all the time since had don’t noting to heal them.

For the first time in almost three decades Red watched the full moon drift across the sky with human eyes. She’d known this night would come, but she’d hoped for longer before her body changed and the moon no longer triggered the wolf within. She smiled as the howls of her pack reached her ears, the itch to join them in the run made her feel restless, with a heavy heart she closed the door and left the night to those who were built for the forest. In the pre-dawn hours Graham entered their house and snuffled at Red’s hand.

“You are back early my love.”

His yellow eyes reflected her sadness and Red buried her face in his soft fur, inhaling the scent of wolf and forest, the closest she would ever get to their moonlit runs. Graham curled around her and let her cry her sorrows into his fur.

Come the morning Red appeared to be back to her cheerful self, but Graham knew his love too well to be fooled, while he was trying to think of a way to ease her pain she shocked him.

“If you want to take another mate, a younger mate, I’ll understand.”

“What? Red, no. You are my love, my one and only, that doesn’t change because your wolf is waning.”

“It was traditional in the past.”

He wrapped his arms around her waist; “When have we ever been traditional, my love?”

Red searched his eyes, “I won’t be able to run with you.”

“I know, but my joints are old and keeping up with the pack is a trial, warm nights by the fire with you sound more appealing to my old bones these days.”

Red had never doubted his heart, she’d seen the good and truth in it when they first met. She smiled; “If we are to snuggle by the fire tonight, you better get chopping some wood, mister.”

He chuckled and sketched a bow, and Red saw the stiffness in his movements, they had both gotten old; and to think there had been a time when they didn’t expect to see another sunrise.

_30 years ago – The Evil Queen’s Castle_

Snow stood before the wall of hearts, shock and disgust twisting her fair features. 

“I didn’t realise that she had taken so many. What are we to do with them all?”

Charming sheathed his sword and stood by her side; “I’ve no idea.”

“Regina’s hold over these poor souls will be broken now she is dead. I will send these hearts where none will ever find them.”

Snow and Charming nodded at the Blue Fairy’s advice. This place had been a home to Snow as a child, but her fond memories were forever tainted by the evil magic Regina had wrought here.

“No! You must return them! Please.”

The plea came from the Huntsman, the only of Regina’s guards to have been spared, and only because of his past kindness to Snow. The Blue Fairy was wary of the man who had been under the thrall of the Evil Queen, and her attitude towards him was influencing the others. The dwarves and warriors were uneasy around him, half expecting him to lunge and attack at any moment. Blue’s tone was firm as she informed him; “It cannot be done. To hold another’s heart in one’s hands is a temptation to Darkness. It is not safe for anyone to handle them.”

Graham stepped forward, barely aware of the way several hands strayed towards the hilts of swords.

“To live without a heart is a half-life, you are condemning all of us who fell afoul of Regina’s anger to walk forever in unfeeling twilight.”

Blue shook her wings in agitation; “I am sorry, but there is nothing that can be done without risking tainting the heart of whoever tries.”

Red watched the exchange from the side lines, she had already argued with Snow about slaying all the guards. Blue had convinced Snow that anyone who worked for Regina could be a double agent who would ingratiate themselves only to cause harm later. Red glared at her friend and wondered where the brave woman who made her own decisions had gone? Perhaps being with child had changed her priorities, but to have diminished her kindness so? That had to be Blue’s influence, or maybe the crown did indeed weigh heavy on her head. Red wore no crown and had no fairy guiding her steps, she was appalled by Snow’s easy acceptance of the fate the heartless would be damned to.

“I’ll do it.”

Snow and Charming gave her matched looks of surprise.

“Red, you can’t. You know Blue says you tempt the Darkness too much with the amount of time you spend in your other form.”

Red scowled; “You were once happy that I embraced my wolf nature, and I didn’t hear you complain once when my nose, or jaws helped your fight.”

Snow didn’t approach her, there was to be no friendly affection to sooth this slight; “The fight is over now Red. You have your cloak, you need never give into the wolf again.”

Red felt her eyes flash as her wolf expressed its outrage at Snow’s words. There were a few startled hisses and from the corner of her eye she caught someone make a sign to ward off evil. As angry as she was she tried one more time to appeal to the goodhearted woman her friend had been.

“The fight is over, and so the healing can begin. These are the hearts of your people Snow, hearts that were taken from them by a false queen, hearts you can return to them.”

For just a moment Red thought she’d been successful, there was an air of determination about Snow that reminded her of the bandit who she’d once found in Granny’s henhouse, but the look past quickly. 

“No, it is too dangerous. Blue, send these to a safe place.”

Blue waved her wand. The Huntsman howled in anguish as the boxed hearts vanished leaving only empty shelves behind them. Red moved to comfort the poor man, and caught the scent of wolf about him. He tensed at her touch, but inhaled deeply and relaxed into her embrace. No one else paid them any mind as Snow’s court began making plans to return to their castle.

“Red. We are leaving.”

She looked into the face of a stranger, this woman couldn’t be her friend, couldn’t be the Snow White she had once known and fought beside. Red pulled away from the Huntsman and curtsied to the Queen.

“I will not be travelling further with you, my path lies on a different course, Your Majesty.”

Snow frowned briefly and giggled, “What is this Red?”

“A parting of the ways, Your Majesty.”

Finally, the idea that Red no longer considered them friends sank into Snow’s mind. She blinked, and then became every inch the Queen speaking to her subject.

“We thank you for your service during the recent conflict, and wish you well for your future.”

“Thank you, Your Majesty.”

At her side the Huntsman gave the departing Royal a formal bow, which went unacknowledged as the Queen and her court swept out of the room and left the castle. Red waited until she heard the sound of hooves before she blew out the tense breath she had been holding and turned to the man at her side.

“I’m Red.”

“Graham, although most call me the Huntsman,” – he looked towards a door in the corner of the room, - “There is a woman in the tower, she was locked away by Regina. Will you help me free her?”

Red growled under her breath that Snow hadn’t even thought to check the castle for prisoners. She gave Graham an apologetic grin, “Sorry, my friend is not the person I thought she was.”

“I see very little of the girl I once saved in the Queen. And the Blue Fairy is not what her legends made her out to be.”

“No, she’s not. Shall we?”

Graham led the way up a spiral staircase into a large airy bed chamber. Red cocked her head and caught his hand; “Hush.”

The steady thrum of a heartbeat reached her ears, and she wondered why she suddenly thought that strange. In the confines of the staircase she had not heard Graham’s heart at all. She snuffed the air and found no scent but their own.

“Oh, I’m an idiot. Your heart is here.”

“What? I thought she’d put it back with the others after, well after the last time.”

His cheeks were flushed with dull shame and he was looking anywhere but the bed, it didn’t take many seconds for Red to understand what he meant by ‘last time’. She felt sick at the idea, if Blue hadn’t have magicked Regina’s body away she would have gnawed on her bones. She had no idea what to say to Graham to ease the pain, so she focused on what she could do for him. His heart was easy to find in a box by the bed, it glowed bright with each beat, she reached for it, but stopped before she touched it and offered the box to Graham.

“Here.”

He took the box with a soft smile.

“Can you put it back for me?”

Red swallowed; “I’ve never done this before.”

“I trust you, please.”

With a deep breath she plucked his heart from the box and pushed it into his chest. Her eyes went wide at his startled gasp.

“Don’t worry. It stings less going back in than it did coming out.”

It was the strangest time to laugh, but it was the only reaction that felt right. They laughed together, her in relief for having not harmed him further and him because he could laugh again. Eventually they remembered they were on a rescue mission and continued on their way to the tower.

They found the prisoner waiting in the middle of her cell. 

“Oh, I am glad you two found each other.”

Red was surprised that this woman appeared to know her, but Graham accepted it and smiled; “Hello Belle, this is Red. Are you ready to leave?”

“Of course I am. I’ll need a change of clothes and supplies.”

Red didn’t need wolf senses to know that Belle was planning more than a simple journey home, there was an adventure in the making here.

“What are you planning on doing?”

Belle raised her chin and fixed Red with a look of determination; “I’m going to break into Snow White’s castle and rescue my True Love, Rumplestiltskin. Any objections?”

Red gave her a wolfish grin; “Not one, would you like some help from someone who knows the castle very well?”

“I knew I’d like you.”

 

_The Present_

Red ran a finger over the scar on her arm she’d received the day they’d freed Rumplestiltskin. It had been hard work and sparked a state of hostility between Queen Snow and the Dark One, but the Queen had more sense than to move overtly against him. She’d taken a political route declaring embargos against all who dealt with him, hypocritical in the extreme considering her history and totally pointless since he was out of the dealing business once he was free with Belle by his side. Red missed the odd pair, they had left the Enchanted Forest a few years later for lands unknown, but before they had gone Rumple had set up the protective wards on the lands that Red and her pack had settled in. All were welcome here; wolf and human lived contently together, and never needed to fear that they would be subject to one of Queen Snow’s periodic purges of magic.

“I wold love to talk to you about this Belle.”

There were other females in the pack who had gone through the Waning, but Red found herself wanting to talk to someone outside of the pack, she wanted Belle’s advice and support. They exchanged letters and Belle made occasional visits with her family, but Red wasn’t ready to commit her current worries to paper and had no way of knowing when Belle would next visit. She gave herself a shake, no point in yearning for the impossible.

Three days after the Wolf Moon a flock of messenger crows arrived at her house. Graham opened the window and dodged out of the way as the crows landed on the kitchen table.

“Belle must have a lot of news.”

“Only one of them has a letter.”

Six of the seven crows were carrying tiny bottles, Red reached for the letter bearer and said thank you as a leg was extended so she could retrieve the tightly rolled scroll. She frowned as she read the opening salutation.

“It’s not from Belle. Listen…

‘Greetings Red, 

Before you get yourself in a tizzy, Belle and the children are healthy and hail, and getting into all manner of adventures that they will regale you with when next we drop by. 

Unless my magic is mistaken a Waning Moon is concerning you greatly. The vials are a potion that will allow you to run with the pack for a Wolf’s Moon. 

There are only six! 

The first I suspect you will use next month because you are as impatiently curious as my sweetheart. The next four will let you run with each of your grandchildren on their first Moon. The last you will know when it is time to use. 

This is rare magic I can only grant you these six times, and no more.

And before you think I am back to my old dealing ways, know that this is my small token for a debt unpaid these thirty years. You and your love reunited me with Belle, and gave us a future. I cannot ever repay you fully for that, but I can give you time with your future grand-pups.

All being well we will visit you in three months’ time,

Until then my friends,

R.’

Graham looked at Red in confusion; “We don’t have any grandchildren.”

Red laughed; “Amy has been married for six months love, I think we might have one on the way. And according to Rumple three more to come. And I can share their first Change with them.”


End file.
